If you’re in your mid 50s or approaching your 60s, there’s a good chance that your doctor has warned you about sarcopenia. This is a common muscle loss condition affecting older adults, and if you’re not metabolically healthy, it could shorten your lifespan.
The good news is, age-related muscle loss isn’t ‘inevitable.’ And if you’ve already been diagnosed, you should know it isn’t a permanent condition.
It’s possible to prevent, manage, and even reverse sarcopenia by focusing on your metabolic health.
What is sarcopenia?
Sarcopenia is the progressive loss of muscle mass beginning in your mid 30s and 40s. It starts to ‘accelerate’ between the ages of 65 and 80, eventually impacting up to 20% of older adults.
However, sarcopenia doesn’t just impact older adults. Young children and teenagers with eating disorders (such as anorexia and bulimia) can also suffer from a loss of muscle mass.
In other words: sarcopenia is more about lifestyle than age.
This is good news.
And it means you can turn this ship around.
Lifestyle factors affecting sarcopenia
Muscle loss from sarcopenia is a multifactorial condition. It’s not just because you’re ‘getting older’ — there are many other elements at play.
For example:
- Older adults require more protein per pound of body weight than younger people. This is because the human body becomes less effective at synthesizing protein over time.
- Many older adults have spent decades working sedentary jobs — up to 86% of them, in fact. Long stretches of inactivity can cause your muscles to shrink. Remember: muscle tissue is more metabolically active than fat.
- If you’re trying to lose a lot of weight quickly, you may be at risk for sarcopenia. It’s not as simple as ‘calories in, calories out’: the less nutrition you consume, the harder it is for your body to maintain itself (including muscles).
- As many as 30% of older adults eat less as they age. Considering processed foods make up 60% of the American diet, it becomes easier and easier to develop nutritional deficiencies.
- Hormonal imbalances play a significant role in muscle loss. Misaligned levels of estrogen, testosterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone can worsen the extent of sarcopenia.
If you’re familiar with the principles of metabolic health, you may notice the above factors connect to poor metabolic function in some way.
As you can see, sarcopenia is both a cause and consequence.
If you have one, you likely have the other.
The vicious cycle between sarcopenia and poor metabolic health
The biggest factor affecting sarcopenia is metabolic health. There are a host of studies pointing to related risk factors — insulin resistance, chronic inflammation, and obesity, to name a few.
It’s scary to think just how close I was to an official diagnosis.
I grew up eating ‘healthy’ foods — think margarine, whole wheat cereal, and low-fat milk — but no matter how much I followed dietary guidelines, I could never keep the weight off.
I had more fat than muscle, which kept my body in a constant state of inflammation. I was also extremely insulin-resistant with out-of-control blood sugar levels.
I was well on my way to a sarcopenia diagnosis (and possibly much worse).
But in 2015, I turned my life around.
Today, I help people reclaim their metabolic health so they can fight and reverse diagnoses like sarcopenia.
Strategies for fighting sarcopenia
Whether you’re hearing about sarcopenia for the first time or are struggling with a recent diagnosis, I want you to know that you’re not beyond saving.
It is possible to fight sarcopenia. It starts with better metabolic health.
Here’s how I would suggest getting started:
Start exercising today
I know you feel tired, and you have a lot on your plate, and you don’t want to spend extra on a gym membership. But again, please remember your health is wealth. It’s worth investing in yourself, especially for the people you love.
Now to clarify, ‘exercise’ in this context doesn’t necessarily mean running on a treadmill. Cardio isn’t the best way to fight sarcopenia — resistance training is.
I recommend lifting weights a few times per week for best results, or trying HIIT exercises in 15-minute bursts. You can do this at home or visit the gym. Aim for 30 to 60 minutes per session.
If you haven’t been to the gym in a while, investing in a personal trainer couldn’t hurt. It won’t take long to see results. Studies show progressive strength training three times a week can treat sarcopenia in as little as three months.
Eat whole, real foods
Whole, real food is the biggest component of reversing a sarcopenia diagnosis. Processed food makes it all-but impossible to lose weight, manage your blood sugar, and eat enough protein to support greater muscle mass.
I recommend:
- Switching to full-fat foods instead of low-fat alternatives. These will help you feel fuller longer and avoid the pitfalls of a low-fat diet.
- Eating animal protein rather than eating plant protein alone. Not only is animal protein more synthesizable, but it’s also more effective at stimulating muscle growth.
- Cut sugar as much as possible. Multiple studies show strong links between glucose fluctuations and muscle loss.
I don’t force patients to follow specific eating patterns, so it may be worth exploring different diets. Many older adults find success with keto or carnivore, which some studies encourage for sarcopenia treatment.
Reevaluate your medications
Medications aren’t the only way to treat chronic disease. Depending on your situation, it could potentially make your sarcopenia worse.
Several drugs have the capacity to induce sarcopenia, including:
- Statins (Lipitor)
- Glucose-lowering drugs (insulin secretagogue)
- Glucocorticoids (a type of steroid)
If possible, chat with your doctor or healthcare professional about alternative forms of treatment. If your physician doesn’t listen (or doesn’t answer your questions), it may be time to fire your doctor.
It’s time to take back your health from sarcopenia
What I want you to take away from this conversation is that sarcopenia is not an unconquerable disease. It’s preventable, manageable, and reversible with lifestyle changes. Don’t listen to the lie that age equals illness.
If you’re looking for an advocate for your metabolic health, you can get in touch with my health coaching team. We offer one-on-one coaching and weekly support so you can restore and reclaim your metabolic health.
